Injury list: round one

Summary: Smith enjoyed a bumper pre-season before he broke his collarbone in the opening round of the NAB Cup. The 21-year-old could be back in action for the club's round-three Showdown. Callinan is vying to overcome a knee sprain, but is expecting to be fit for selection this Friday.

Summary: The main concern for the Lions has centred on the fitness of Simon Black. The Lions have been reluctant to put a timeframe on his return from a pre-season knee surgery, but coach Michael Voss has consistently stated Black will not be rushed back into the seniors, but will return some time in the first month. Ruckman Matthew Leuenberger has had some minor hiccups on his return from an Achilles injury, but after playing modified minutes in the reserves at the weekend is almost ready to go, while Brent Staker (knee) is taking a little longer to recover than the club initially hoped.

Summary: One of new coach Mick Malthouse's stated aims this pre-season was to reach round one with a healthy list, and the Blues are in decent shape. The only key injury concern – albeit a big one – is Jarrad Waite, the club's most important forward, who faces a race against time to recover from a calf injury and be ready for the Blues' season-opener against Richmond on March 28. Impressive draftee Nick Graham and fellow midfielder David Ellard were in the selection frame before being sidelined a fortnight ago. Rookie-listed Andrew Collins had also been flying before going down.

Summary: The Pies will be several players short of full strength for their season-opener against North Melbourne on Easter Sunday at Etihad Stadium. The good news is none of their established players take long-term injuries into the start of the season. Several of those who will miss the opening round, such as Luke Ball, Andrew Krakouer, Dale Thomas and Alex Fasolo will simply run out of time after off-season injuries, or in the case of Ball, a complication from a season-ending ACL injury last year. Reid should play against North.

Alan Didak faces a delayed start to the year with a hamstring injury. Picture: AFL Media

ESSENDON
Jason Winderlich (groin) – test

Summary: For the first time in a while, the Bombers head into a season with a very healthy list. The only concern is Jason Winderlich, with the injury-prone forward suffering from groin tightness, a complaint which saw him miss the NAB Cup. In the scheme of his injuries in recent years, however, it's only a small blip and he should be available in the early rounds of the season.

Summary: 'Fit and available' is one of Ross Lyon's mantras and it's one his players have lived up to this pre-season. With just two players unavailable for round one, Fremantle is in great shape after a grueling pre-season. Aaron Sandilands' round-two return has been put on hold after a hamstring setback but Jon Griffin is more than capable cover while the veteran recovers. Anthony Morabito opted for a hybrid LARS operation, which could extend his recovery time but give him better long-term prospects. He is running and hoping to play at WAFL level mid-season.

Summary: Following some pre-season interruptions, everything is coming together at the right time for the Suns. Seb Tape (knee reconstruction) and Trent McKenzie (knee) are now ready to play their first football in the reserves, while captain Gary Ablett, Michael Rischitelli, Brandon Matera and Dion Prestia all have some good football behind them after off-season injuries. Nathan Bock's broken leg is still taking time to heal, while impressive young forward Tom Lynch is still a few weeks away with his foot injury. Jesse Lonergan (hand) may be out for up to six weeks.

Summary: The majority of the club's young stable of talent has a clean bill of health entering the new season. No.2 NAB AFL Draft pick O'Rourke and Haynes are nearing a return, while Buntine is making good progress from his injury picked up from a crunching challenge during the NAB Cup. Tyson is also on track following knee surgery and aiming for a return in May. Cornes' knee and Stewart's back are more concerning, but at least the likes of Jon Patton, Steve Coniglio and Jeremy Cameron – who all had injury issues at times last season – are fighting fit ahead of round one.

Summary: Gibson left the field with sore ribs during Saturday's practice match in Craigieburn after a heavy collision, but coach Alastair Clarkson was confident there was no serious damage. Hodge seems more likely to play VFL than AFL in round one as he builds his fitness after knee surgery. Lake and Rioli both missed the Hawks' final three NAB Cup games and must be in some doubt to face Geelong on Easter Monday. Osborne is yet to play a game in his comeback from an anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

Matt Suckling grabs his injured right knee. He is likely to miss the season. Picture: AFL Media

Summary: Melbourne is cutting it fine to have several key players ready round one against Port Adelaide at the MCG, but many of its key players remain on schedule. Mitch Clark has been missing since round 13 last year but in a VFL practice match on Saturday. Jack Trengove will play in the same game after suffering a stress fracture to his foot in early December. He has had no setbacks and has been tracking along at the same rate as Clark. The club is hopeful Trengove's natural fitness base will stand him in good stead after an interrupted pre-season. Jack Viney will be monitored carefully as the club will take no risks while leg injuries to Tom McDonald, Sam Blease and Chris Dawes might make them touch and go for this week but the club remains hopeful they will be available for selection in round one. Max Gawn is progressing in his return from a knee reconstruction while the club is taking a conservative path when it comes to Rohan Bail's concussion.

NORTH MELBOURNE
Nil

Summary: North had a remarkable run with injury last season and looks set to enter 2013 in similar good health. Key players Nathan Grima (back), Leigh Adams (shoulders), Daniel Wells (Achilles) and Jack Ziebell (knee) had to be managed through the summer, but all are now back to full fitness and have each played at least two pre-season games. After last Saturday's practice match against Hawthorn, North coach Brad Scott said he was content all his players had logged sufficient game time ahead of the Roos' round one clash with Collingwood.

Summary: The luckless Butcher suffered a "minor crack" in his hand in the Power's trial win over the Sydney Swans last weekend, but the club is confident he'll be available for round one. He's underdone though after only recently returning to competitive football and will likely need time in the SANFL. Cassisi (calf) and Ebert (hamstring) will both return to SANFL action this week with Salter's stress fractures meaning he could be the club's only injured player for the start of the season.

Summary: "[Foley and Grimes] are tracking well, although they definitely won’t play round one. Nathan is back to his previous best sprint work. We've just got to make sure we manage his loads and get him up and going. He'll probably be back about round five to seven, somewhere around there. Dylan is training full-time with the group now, and we've just got to make sure we get some game time into him." – coach Damien Hardwick (from Fox Sports).

Summary: The Saints' backline could start the season undermanned with Dempster and Stanley in doubt, and Sam Fisher under somewhat of a cloud after being spotted in a moon boot on Monday. However, the Saints said he had precautionary scans that came back clear. The opportunity to elevate key defender Ferguson for Markworth is gone for now, meaning they may have to get creative in re-organising the back six before March 30.

Summary: The injury situation is positive for the premiers, with knee victim Johnson and Rohan the only long-term concerns. A number of established Swans are pushing to be fully fit for round one, but have at least managed to return to the field. Nick Smith (knee), Marty Mattner (hip), Mitch Morton (back), Shane Mumford (ankle) and Adam Goodes (knee) have all played some football in the past fortnight. The decision for coach John Longmire now is how many underdone players he can afford to carry into the season-opener against GWS. "We'll see what happens for round one," Longmire said. "What we're conscious of is not playing too many players (in round one) that haven't had the right amount of preparation."

Summary: Wellingham's ankle injury, which was sustained in a trampoline accident, sums up the Eagles' pre-season. Things haven't gone to plan. The former Magpie had to remain in a moon boot longer than forecast, ruling him out of the early rounds after a strong NAB Cup performance had the club excited. All Australian ruckman Naitanui and veteran midfielder Kerr have also endured drawn out recoveries after undergoing surgery late last year. Rosa required surgery for compartment syndrome after he pulled up sore from the club's final NAB Cup match, continuing a luckless run for the midfielder. Nicoski has been placed on the long-term injury list as he battles to recover from major hamstring surgery.

Summary: The Western Bulldogs boast a relatively small injury list on the eve of the season. Tom Williams is the only player set to miss round one, with Jake Stringer and Easton Wood to face fitness tests.

Jake Stringer faces a test after injuring an ankle during the NAB Cup. Picture: AFL Media